Be specific and descriptive
Another piece of good writing advice is to be specific and descriptive. “Don’t just write about a fruit,” I was told, “Write about a luscious, white nectarine that is so sweet and juicy that you want to cry.”

While most essay questions are pretty broad and vague, colleges want just the opposite: answers that are specific, and with plenty of details. Application essays that really work are focused on one minor incident, one interaction,
or a small slice of life.

Avoid generalities, clichés, bromides and philosophical/psychological babble
In other words, stay away from:

Generalities - Don’t say “I am very hard-working: describe a situation in which you are hard-working, why and how that affects you or other people.

Clichés - Don’t say, “…and from this AFS experience I learned how to appreciate other cultures.” Explain what you experienced, why it touched you, what you learned from the experience or how it changed you.)

Bromides - Don’t say, “I began to see that if people would just talk to each other, we could have world peace.” Rather, describe a specific problem, discuss how it developed, identify what could have been done differently and what you might do differently should it happen again.)